Cascio tally lifts Rapids past Melbourne Heart

HONOLULU, Hawaii (Saturday, February 25, 2012) – The Colorado Rapids captured a 1-0 win over Melbourne Heart in the Consolation Match of the Hawaiian Islands Invitational on Saturday evening, with the winning goal coming from rookie Tony Cascio. The Rapids' first round selection in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft scored on a rocket in the 30th minute, and also hit the crossbar and the post with shots later in the match.

The Rapids started the game with a lineup that had just two changes from Thursday’s match against Yokohama F.C., with Steward Ceus replacing Matt Pickens in goal, and Quincy Amarikwa starting up top for Omar Cummings, who left Hawaii to join the Jamaican National Team for a friendly match at New Zealand next Wednesday.

WATCH: Cascio post-game press conference

After dominating the opening stages, it was Cascio that finally broke the deadlock when he found space on the left wing, dribbled inside, and lashed a low, right-footed shot into the corner of the near post after 30 minutes. The rookie continued his strong play, hitting the crossbar from distance before the half. The only dark spot on the first half was when captain Pablo Mastroeni left the match after 40 minutes, taking a knock to the head. He will be evaluated further upon the team’s return to Denver.

The second half saw more of the same for the Rapids, though the team made several substitutions throughout and brought in younger players. Cascio hit the post from 20 yards with a blast on a free kick, and Amarikwa also had several chances. The Rapids were again denied by the crossbar when Andre Akpan hit the beam with a header just moments after entering the game. Another new Rapids player, Kohei Yamada, made his debut, entering the match in minute 75 for Jaime Castrillón. Colorado outshot Melbourne by a final tally of 15-3.

With the result, the Rapids earned third place in the inaugural Hawaiian Islands Invitational, having lost their opening match to Yokohama F.C. by a 2-1 score on Thursday. The team will leave Hawaii on Sunday night and land in Denver on Monday morning, resuming training later in the week ahead of the team’s MLS regular season debut on March 10 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.